Oh, My Maid!
by Peanut Princess
Summary: Tezuka's grandfather only sees one person fit to be his maid: Tanaka Manami, the pet shop attendant. The old man has a more interesting plan, however; one that involves his stoic grandson, Kunimitsu. Chaos ensues! Not your ordinary TezuOC.
1. Chapter 1

_To Vasha, Pauline, Jenna and Shannon  
>...and to everyone who believes in my skills as a writer.<em>

* * *

><p>Tezuka Kunikazu had a lot of time in his hands. Ripe at an old age, he spent most of his time teaching judo to police officers (since he himself used to be part of the force), gardening and tending to his large collection of koi. He particularly loved the koi, and he often found himself spending hours by the man-made fish pond at their backyard, just observing the swimming creatures and – sometimes, when he felt like it – even painting them. His son Kuniharu and daughter-in-law Ayana were quite very supportive of his hobby, and so had extended the house to accommodate a large garden where his plants and pond now stood. Many of his son's guests had been largely impressed by the beauty of the Tezuka backyard, to the point that they've asked Kunikazu if he was open to the landscaping business. Kunikazu didn't feel like making profit off of his hobbies, however; he preferred to tend plants and koi for leisure. Besides, putting up a business was too much for his old heart to handle. He'd rather spend the rest of his life in his garden.<p>

Kunikazu started the day at six in the morning, as usual. He left his room (which was located on the first floor of the two-storey house, since his back didn't give him the benefit of using the stairs frequently) and saw Ayana at the kitchen counter, already preparing breakfast. If his family was anything, it was prompt.

"Ah, good morning, Otou-san!" she greeted cordially, spotting him at the kitchen doorway. "How's your back?"

"Good as it was twenty years ago," Kunikazu joked, before leaving for the living room, where the entrance to the backyard was.

It was a misty morning, and his plants were topped with droplets of dew. The air smelled fresh and damp. Hugging his sweater closer to his body, the old man walked across the stone steps strewn across the grassy ground, pausing at the right hand corner of the garden, where the fortune fountain where his koi lived was located. Twenty large orange, white and black fish greeted him, lazily swimming in slow circles around the crystal clear water. It was time to feed them.

When Kunikazu reached for the tin can hidden in one of the large rocks lining the pond, he realized that he was out of fish pellets. He remembered specifically telling Ayana to buy fish supply the other day. Sighing gravely as if faced with a painful ordeal, he trudged back to the house with the empty container.

"Ayana, we're out of pellets!" he said crossly.

Ayana looked guilty. "I'm so sorry, Outo-san, there was a huge sale in the supermarket and the line was just too long. I spent the whole afternoon fighting for fresh meat."

"Never mind, I'll just go to the pet shop right now."

"But Outo-san, it's six in the morning-"

Kunikazu waved her off. "They'll open up for me."

The street outside the Tezuka Residence was almost empty when Kunikazu stepped out, his cane and purse at hand. There was the newspaper boy doing his rounds, then a few commuters off to work. He took his time walking, noting how each house looked a bit older than they were the week before, and how tiny changes kept showing up, such as the brand new red car parked in the Ishikawa's garage and the new paint job on Matsumoto's roof. How time flies.

The pet shop was located along the main street three blocks from where the Tezuka family lived. By the time that Kunikazu arrived, the shop was still closed, a chain lock fixed on the double glass doors and the blinds pulled down on the windows. However, he could see a sliver of yellow light from the gaps of the blinds.

He rang the quaint gold bell hanging on the canopy at the doorstep, and almost immediately the blinds from one window were pushed up, revealing the half-sleepy face of a young auburn-haired girl.

"Oh, Ojii-san!" she said happily, once she recognized Kunikazu. As Kunikazu smiled and tipped his head in greeting, the girl disappeared from the window, reappearing seconds later from behind the shop with a ring of keys in her hand.

"Sorry to bother you so early in the morning, Manami-chan," he said.

The young girl – Manami – waved it off like a pesky fly. "I figured that you'd be coming, Ojii-san. I didn't remember you or Ayana-san dropping by in the past two weeks." She unlocked the chains and pushed the door open to let Kunikazu in. "Come in!"

This particular pet shop smelled oddly clean, unlike others that clearly smelled like an animal den. The display window housed cages of colorful birds of various breeds, while the length of the wall to Kunikazu's right was adorned with shelves of aquariums. To his left, there was a wide glass window, giving him a decent view of another room where the dogs and cats were kept, and near the counter at the end of the shop were the glass cages of little rodents.

"How many cans, Ojii-san?" came Manami's muffled voice from under the counter.

"Make it three." Kunikazu peered closely at a picture frame on the wall next to the door that led to the shop owners' private quarters. There was a kind-looking young woman that was Manami's mother, and then Manami herself, just a few years younger. He thought that she was just about the age of his grandson, Kunimitsu.

He liked Manami and her mother. It was in this shop where he bought his first set of koi five years ago, and the two had been so helpful in putting up his pond. They also often gave him generous discounts and Christmas pudding, and during her spring break, Manami would visit him in the dojo and try to learn basic judo. They had also been there on his sixtieth birthday celebration at home, giving him a white-spotted koi as a present.

Sometimes, Kunikazu wished that Kuniharu and Ayana would give him a granddaughter like Manami. He could really use some lively chatter back at home that his grandson Kunimitsu definitely couldn't provide him (the boy was as responsive as a rock).

"Here you go!" Manami had straightened up and put the fish pellets in a plastic bag.

Kunikazu was about to open his purse to pay for the bill, when it suddenly struck him. He froze, unable to move, his throat stuck, his knees weak.

He fell to the ground, his cane hitting the tiled floor with a loud clang.

"OJII-SAN!"

* * *

><p>"...all his vital signs are now stable, so you shouldn't worry now, Tezuka-san. Your father has passed the critical stage."<p>

Manami arrived in Tezuka Kunikazu's private hospital room that afternoon just in time to catch the final words of the good news. Both Kuniharu – Kunikazu's son – and his wife were there, their faces reflecting a sign of utmost relief. Just as the physician walked away, Kuniharu spotted her standing just a few meters away.

"Ah, Manami-san," he said genially. "Came to visit Otou-san?"

Manami nodded. It had been three days since Tezuka Ojii-san's unfortunate heart attack, and it was a good thing that she hadn't panicked when the old man suddenly dropped to the ground, clutching his chest tightly. It wasn't the first time that she had seen someone like that, but it had been unnerving, still.

Tezuka Ojii-san was something like a father to her.

"I just want to give him flowers and some of Okaa-san's vegetable curry," she explained, gesturing to the small bouquet of assorted flowers and bento box she's holding.

"Otou-san will be delighted!" Ayana said delightfully. "We couldn't thank you enough for saving his life."

Manami blushed. "Err, it's nothing really."

Ayane only smiled at her and accompanied her inside the room. It was big and bare, aside from the small pile of fruits and other delicacies sent as get-well-soon presents to Kunikazu. The old Tezuka was propped up in bed, looking a bit shaken but healthy, nevertheless.

"Manami-chan!" he greeted, upon seeing Manami. "Thank goodness you're here, I'm getting really bored."

"Shouldn't you be still in bed, Otou-san?" Kuniharu said, frowning slightly at the open TV fixed on the wall across the bed.

"Well I am _in _bed, can't you see?" Kunikazu huffed grumpily. "In fact, I think I should be released now. The doctor said I'm fine."

"Otou-san," Ayana said patiently. "They still have to observe you for a while. And the doctor told us that you should be bringing your medicine with you all the time."

"And that you shouldn't be allowed to go out on your own," Kuniharu added sternly.

Kunikazu clicked his tongue impatiently. "Yeah, right."

Manami was biting her tongue to suppress from giggling at Kunikazu's antics when the door suddenly opened and someone came rushing in. It was a tall bespectacled boy, about Manami's age, looking as if he had just come from a long travel, with his zipped up sweater and large baggage in tow. He bowed briefly to Kuniharu and Ayana.

"I'm home."

The reaction was instantaneous to Ayana. She hugged the boy tightly and said, "Welcome back, Kunimitsu!"

"It's good you're back, son," Kuniharu said, giving him a one-armed hug. "It was such a short notice."

"It's fine, I was about to go home soon anyway," said the boy, before he went at the bedside and held Kunikazu's hand. "How are you, Ojii-san?"

"Ah, my boy!" Kunikazu exclaimed happily. He clasped the younger boy's hand with his. "Your old man's okay now. You didn't have to fly all the way from Germany just to see me!"

"I insisted to see you myself," he said curtly.

"There was no need, Kunimitsu."

Manami stared at the boy. Tezuka Kunimitsu. He was of the same age as hers, and had been spending his time in Germany for a rehabilitation camp for the past two months. They said it was because of an arm injury from playing tennis. She rarely ever saw him, and hadn't spoken to him personally at all. Once or twice he had visited the pet shop to buy pellets in place of Tezuka Ojii-san or Ayana-san, and he was also there in Kunikazu's sixtieth birthday party, but he was just too...quiet and unsmiling, that Manami hesitated – was even scared – to talk to him. Ojii-san talked about him a lot, though, how he was a genius and a tennis prodigy, how he was so proud of him but that sometimes he wished he was a lot more talkative. According to the elderly Tezuka, talking to him was like talking to a brick wall.

Also, he was quite popular even in other schools, like in Manami's. He had recently passed the entrance exam in that prestigious high school she could only dream of going to.

"I believe you have already met Manami-chan?" Ayana suddenly said, bringing her back to her senses.

When Tezuka Kunimitsu's sharp brown eyes found her beside the table of get-well-soon presents, she stood a bit consciously and bowed to avoid looking back at him. "I'm Tanaka Manami. It's...nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too," he replied in a monotonous voice, bowing briefly. Manami wasn't sure if he even remembered her at all.

"She was the one who brought Otou-san to the hospital," Ayana said. "We owe her a lot."

"Is that so? Then we are very grateful," Tezuka Kunimitsu said, bowing at her once more.

"I told you, it's nothing. I just did what I should," Manami fussed shyly, blushing once more. She spotted the time on the wall clock and realized that she was running late for her shop duty. "And, I should go now. My mother will be looking for me in any minute."

"Go ahead, young lady," Kunikazu chuckled. "Say my regards to Yuko-san."

"Get well soon, Ojii-san. Thank you for your time," she addressed the Tezukas, bowing for one last time before leaving the room.

"Take care, Manami-chan!" Ayana called out.

When Manami glanced back just as the door was closing behind her, she caught Tezuka Kunimitsu looking at her.

* * *

><p>"Tomorrow is your first day in high school, aren't you excited?" Tanaka Yuko said to Manami over dinner.<p>

Manami rolled her eyes. "'Kaa-san, you're the one who's excited." She shoved a large mouthful of rice and fish in her mouth.

"Eat like a lady, will you?" her mother reprimanded lightly. "People might think I'm not feeding you properly." She paused slightly. "Tezuka-san was released in the hospital this afternoon."

Manami brightened up. "Really? That's great! I've been practicing judo by myself and I'm excited to show him my moves!"

"Don't forget to give him some of our pudding once he comes and visits."

"Yeah, sure."

While her mother was busy helping herself with dinner, Manami peered up at her from the top of her own rice bowl. Fine lines were starting to make themselves pronounced on Yuko's forehead and eyes, and she looked a bit thinner than usual. Manami would like to think it was simply because of stress and exhaustion from looking after the shop, but she knew that wasn't the case.

Manami was reminded of an event long ago, when she was still very young. Her father had died in a nasty car accident, leaving her mother very devastated. For days, she had refused to go out of her room, which left Manami living off of canned sardines and instant noodles, since by then she barely knew how to cook. When she had finally come about, Manami's mother became a workaholic, exhausting herself twelve hours a day in work until they had enough money to start a business.

Although it had been running for a long time now, Manami knew that they didn't gain from the pet shop as much as they had in the first few years. There had been a lot of competition around, and it was a small-scale business anyway. She knew that her mother was having a hard time maintaining the shop, that her contractual job had recently been terminated and that for some reason, she had refused to find another job, insisting instead to man the pet shop with Date-san, the hired store manager. At first, Manami remained clueless as to the real situation, but when she had started to notice her mother's deteriorating physical features and accidentally find medical prescriptions hidden in her pants pockets, the truth struck her: her mother was sick, and, worse, she was keeping her daughter from knowing it.

The idea of Yuko hiding her illness all along made her feel angry and sad at the same time. Even though she could understand her mother's reasons for doing so, she still couldn't believe that she wouldn't let her in the problem. Manami was the only family she had.

"Did Tezuka-san's grandson come back from Germany already?" Yuko asked, breaking the comfortable silence and snapping Manami back to the present.

"Yes, he's going to a local high school," Manami replied quickly.

"Hmm. He's quite cute, don't you think?"

Manami almost choked on her rice, momentarily forgetting what she was thinking about. "Kaa-san!"

Her mother blinked at her innocently. "What? I'm just saying. You're so exaggerated."

"Yeah, whatever."

Her mother giggled softly. "You look like your father when you're embarrassed."

Manami paused at that, before smiling widely. A wonderful idea had just crossed her mind. "Ne, Kaa-san, I have a proposal."

"What is it?"

"What if I get a part-time job? You know, just to help out a bit in extending our budget."

The smile on her mother's face was replaced with a look of confusion. "What would you need a job for?"

Manami hesitated. "Uhm, for extra money?"

"Don't I give you enough allowance already?" Her mother frowned.

"'Kaa-san," Manami said lightly, "I just want to help out-"

"_No,_" her mother said calmly. "You should be focusing on your studies and nothing else. Why do you think we have the pet shop?"

Manami had foreseen this coming. Yuko could be as stubborn as a kid. "'Kaa-san, I know that business hadn't been good lately."

Her mom's face faltered a bit, but she regained her conviction in a split-second. "Then you should be here helping me instead of looking for another job."

"Really, that's Date-san's job," Manami argued. "What I mean is, since you refuse to go to work, I will."

"I don't go to work because I don't see the need to."

"No, you don't go to work because you _can't_," Manami spat, realizing her mistake one second too late.

Her mother's expression was unreadable. "What do you mean by that, Manami?" she asked coldly.

Manami stood with so much force that her chair almost toppled over. "You know what I mean. I'm looking for a job, okay? Good night."

"Manami-" Yuko began, but her daughter already went upstairs and had shut herself in her bedroom. She set down the bowl she hadn't realized she had been holding throughout the argument and gave a deep sigh.

"So much like her father."

* * *

><p>"Can you please stop talking as if I'm not here?" Kunikazu suddenly blurted out over dinner, looking rather irritated.<p>

At once, Kuniharu and Ayana stopped talking. For the past ten minutes, they had been arguing about Kunikazu. Both of them had a job, and soon, their son Kunimitsu will resume school, leaving the old man by himself in the house. Kuniharu had suggested that Ayana should take a leave, but Ayana was against the idea, proposing to get a part-time maid instead. No one had asked Kunikazu's opinion throughout the conversation, and that irked him in palpable amounts. It was as if along with the heart attack, he had lost the ability to think.

"I just spent two weeks in the hospital and now I can't participate in family decision-making?" he said angrily. "And what is with that setup? It's not as if I can't walk anymore!"

"Otou-san, the doctor clearly said-" Kuniharu started, but the old Tezuka raised his hand to stop him from speaking.

"I am fine by myself, thanks."

The look of exasperation in the couple's faces was evident. "You're not, Outo-san," Ayana said. "What if you get another attack-"

"I have the pills," Kunikazu insisted. "Besides, you both said it, you can't do it."

"That's why we're coming up with a solution-"

"—and I don't see you coming up with any."

There was a moment of silence, where Kunikazu glared at the couple, and the latter thought of a way to get the old man to agree with them.

Finally, after what seemed like five minutes, his grandson, Kunimitsu, spoke. "I am against the idea of leaving Ojii-san by himself. I think hiring someone to look after him is the best solution."

All three older Tezukas looked at him in surprise. Kunimitsu almost never spoke during mealtimes, not unless someone asked him a question. To be frank, they had almost forgotten that he was even there.

"Well, that settles it, doesn't it?" Ayana said after a while. "We're going to get someone who can take care of household chores and look out for Outo-san until I come back from work."

"Do you understand that, Outo-san?" Kuniharu asked Kunikazu.

Kunikazu was in deep thought. While he absolutely understood that his son, daughter-in-law and grandson were just after his welfare, he could not possibly see himself with anyone else aside from them. He didn't like letting random strangers in the house, more so touch their things, unless they were someone he had proven trustworthy over time. If only he had someone like that...

At that precise moment, an idea struck him.

"Alright," he said, a tone of finality in his voice. "I will concede in this ridiculous idea of yours. But I have one condition." He made sure they were listening before he went on.

"I want you to hire Manami-chan, and no one else."

* * *

><p><em>Koi<em> – Japanese term for carp

_Bento_ - lunch

_Ojii-san_ – Grandpa

_Otou-san_ – Father

_Okaa-san_ – Mother

**EDIT:** Yes, I am _so_ back. Only under a different name. People used to know me as _Polkadottedmonkey_, but that was at least two years ago and I'm not sure if anyone still knows me here. So...hi. *smiles awkwardly* By the way, if there are _any discrepancies between the Canon and this fanfic, please overlook them_. It's been a while since I have seen any PoT episode/manga chapter so my memory regarding trivial canon facts might be a bit faulty. Again, this fic is set in _post-canon _period, so the third years (Tezuka, Oishi, Fuji, etc.) are first year high school students and the rest one year higher. :)

You're gonna do me a big favor by dropping by a review. *hint* I hope you enjoyed!


	2. Chapter 2

Manami woke up extra early on her first day of classes. Her new set of uniform (a white long-sleeved blouse, a red ribbon, matching dark green blazer and plaid skirt and knee-high black socks) was hung neatly on the wall to avoid from getting wrinkled, and her shoes had been polished overnight. Her school bag was sitting on her study desk, heavy with new books. Her bike looked as good as new; the gears had been oiled to perfection, and the other day, she had Date-san fix it with a quaint knitted basket in front for both aesthetic and practical use.

She still felt nervous, though, and had spent some time triple-checking if everything was in order. When she was satisfied with her job, she hit the showers, swiftly got into her uniform and sat in front of the dresser, blow-drying her hair absentmindedly.

A fifteen-year-old girl looked back at her from the mirror with a thoughtful expression, her light brown hair frizzy and wet and her gray eyes searching. People – especially her mother – had always pointed out how much she resembled her father. She didn't have a lot of memories about him, though. They did spend weekends together as a family, but other than that, he was always at work, leaving too early and coming home too late. The most vivid memory Manami had of him was when she was six years old, which was, coincidentally, also the last living memory she had of him.

It was set on one late afternoon in the public playgrounds. She had been crying relentlessly because of a missing toy (it was an orange ball, if she could remember correctly). Her playmates had tried to calm her down for a while, but when she refused to stop crying and move from her position on the swing, they had long given up and left her to her own devices.

It was then when someone had called her out.

"Why is this pretty lady crying?"

She looked up, and through her watery vision she saw her father kneel before her with a small smile on his face. In his hand was her missing orange ball.

"Ah," he said, noticing that she was staring at the ball. "I thought this might cheer her up. Found it bouncing along the road."

"That's my ball," she hiccupped.

"I figured as much." He dribbled it twice before passing it to her. She caught it deftly and suddenly she felt a whole lot better. Silently, she watched as her father stood and chose to sit on the empty swing next to her.

"Why are you home so early, Otou-san?" she asked curiously. She had long been used to having dinner and going to bed without seeing him.

Her father seemed a bit surprised at her question, but his smile widened, nevertheless. "It's because I sensed that my little _orihime_ needs me."

Six-year-old Manami's eyes widened in astonishment. "Really?"

He nodded earnestly. "I have this way of detecting her when she's in distress."

"Like a superhero?"

"Yes, like a superhero," he said amusedly. After a short pause, he rummaged a hand in his pants pocket and withdrew a silver bracelet. "Guess what? This is something I got so that from now on, you can contact me whenever you need me."

Manami watched in naive excitement as he put it around her small wrist. "How can I use it?"

"Oh that's easy," he said. "Just close your eyes and call me, and I'll be there, wherever you are!"

Manami raised her wrist in level with her eye and examined the bracelet closely. It was a simple silver chain with a red stone pendant. "It's pretty," she commented.

"Like you," he said, with a wide smile. "Let's go home now, shall we? Your okaa-san's waiting for us."

Manami blinked three times, and his father's face disappeared from view and her nine-years-older reflection was looking back at her once more. She put down the blow-drier, combed her mid-length hair and pulled it back with a black headband. She stood and was about to leave when something steeled her. She hesitated for a moment, before she went back to her dresser, pulled open a drawer and produced her jewelry box.

She was never a fan of accessories, because they often got in the way of her activities. So when she opened the lid of the box, there was barely anything inside aside from a couple of earrings and a necklace or two. What she got, however, was the long-forgotten silver bracelet that her father had given her before he died. It still looked as new as it had been nine years ago, the red stone glinting happily against the light. Manami thought for a moment, before deciding to wear it around her right wrist. Because she had grown so much, the chain felt a little too snug against her skin, but she didn't really mind and that could be easily remedied. She made a mental note to have it altered somewhere after class.

She didn't know what made her wear it again after a very long time. It might however be somehow related to the fact that today was her father's ninth death anniversary.

* * *

><p>Date-san was the only person in the shop when Manami went downstairs. That didn't surprise her. Every year during her father's death anniversary, her mother would spend the morning at his grave. Usually, she tagged Manami along, but the argument from last night was still fresh on both their minds, and neither of them really wanted to talk about it – not yet, at least.<p>

She spotted the prepared breakfast on the dining table, but chose not to eat. She was feeling a bit sick for some reason.

"Are you okay, Manami-chan?" Date-san asked in concern, noticing her pale complexion when she emerged from the doorway leading to the shop.

She smiled at the kind young man. "First day blues. Good morning, Date-san."

He seemed to have bought the fake excuse. "Oh, I know the feeling," he chuckled. "You have a good day, alright?"

"Tell Okaa-san I'm going ahead!"

"Sure. Take care, Manami-chan!"

Manami's high school would take about a half-hour bike ride from where she lived. It was a pretty large school, where there was a separate building allotted to each of the four year levels, the gym and the administrative offices. She biked past the large number of students streaming in through the main entrance and was momentarily overwhelmed by the size of the grounds. There was a wide lawn, a series of tennis courts, a track-and-field oval and a large cafeteria.

As she parked her bike and secured it to the metal railings, another girl took the space beside hers and hurriedly chained her bike. Manami didn't mind her until she heard a faint sound of something softly hitting the ground. She looked down and realized that the girl had dropped her wallet as she was walking away.

She picked it up at caught up with its unknowing owner, who was walking so quickly that Manami almost lost her in the sea of students.

"Hey, you dropped something."

The girl – who turned out to be at least two inches taller than Manami – looked over her shoulder distractedly for a second and recognized the wallet in Manami's hand.

"Oh!" she said in surprise as Manami handed it over. "Thanks. I'm just so nervous!"

Manami smiled. "No problem. Are you a freshman too?"

"Yeah. The name's Rio. Takagawa Rio." She had short, wavy black hair and bright green eyes. She was pretty, and she looked nice enough to Manami.

"Tanaka Manami. But you can just call me Manami."

"Alright, Manami-chan, what class are you in?" Rio asked conversationally as they resumed walking towards the freshman building.

"Class 1."

Rio looked ecstatic. "I'm in Class 1 too! I think we're gonna be really good friends!"

"You think so?" Manami said, laughing lightly.

"Yeah, I think you're nice!"

The rest of their walk was spent exchanging trivial facts about each other, such as where they lived and which school they came from. During their short conversation Manami discovered that Takagawa Rio was the youngest of five siblings and had come all the way from Chiba to study in Tokyo.

As they walked down the corridor where Class 1 was, Manami asked Rio. "So why do you want to be here?"

Rio was busy peeping through each door they passed. "I came here because…_oh my god._"

"What?" Manami blinked, before she realized that Rio had stopped in her tracks in front of a door labelled "Class 1."

"Oh good, you've found our room," she commented lightly, but then noticed that the taller girl was staring fixatedly at something inside the room with a look of pure shock on her face. "Rio-chan?"

"Oh Manami-chan," said Rio, in an unusually high-pitched voice. "Please tell me I'm dreaming."

Curious and confused, Manami went to stand beside Rio and tried to see what she was looking at. "What's the mat –?"

The question died in her throat.

Sitting in one of the desks by the window reading a book was a boy she would recognize anywhere she went. Very tall, bespectacled, possessing honey-colored hair and sharp brown eyes that seemed to see right through her…

_Tezuka Kunimitsu_, her mind screamed.

"_He's definitely one of my reasons for coming here_," Rio breathed dreamily. She looked like she was going to hyperventilate anytime soon. "Tezuka Kunimitsu-sama. I didn't know that he's going to be here!"

"You know him?" Manami said in surprise.

Rio looked at her as if she was crazy. "Of course I do, silly! That guy is a tennis legend!" she shrieked, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I was there all throughout last year's Kantou Tournament and Nationals just to watch him play!"

"Oh," Manami said, at a loss for words. She, too, had not expected Tezuka Kunimitsu to be in the same school as her – much less in the same class – since she thought that he was going to that popular metropolitan high school where only the smartest kids could study. The fact that even people from Chiba such as Rio could recognize him definitely made his rumored reputation an understatement.

Manami was snapped out of her light daze as Rio began shaking her arm furtively.

"We _have _to talk to him, Manami-chan!" she almost pleaded.

"What?" Manami squawked. _This is going a bit too far_.

"Will you go with me?" she asked, batting her eyelashes at Manami. "Pleeeaaase?"

Manami gave her ten-minute-old friend an incredulous look. "Are you sure you'd want to—?"

But Rio had already practically dragged her inside the room and they were winding through desks towards Tezuka's direction. Manami wished at the back of her head that he would not recognize her in any way.

But then—

"Excuse me, but where do you think you're going?"

Suddenly, Manami found her and Rio blocked by three girls, (thankfully) hiding them from Tezuka's line of vision. However, one look at these girls told her that they weren't there to make friends with them. At all.

"We're going to Tezuka-sama," Rio answered straightforwardly, undaunted by the intimidating looks that the strangers were directing at them.

"Uhh," Manami said to her in a hushed voice, "Rio-chan, I think this isn't a good-"

"And what do you think gives your permission to just walk up to Tezuka-sama like that?" the one in the middle of the trio asked, not bothering to hide the edge in her voice. She had long, chocolate brown hair that seemed unnaturally shiny, pencilled eyebrows and eyelashes enhanced by mascara.

Rio openly rolled her eyes. "Oh I don't know, because this is a democratic country?"

"You're not from around here, are you?" said the second girl, who was standing on the first speaker's side like a bodyguard. "It's impossible for you not to know who Mizuru-chan is!"

Manami was born and raised in Tokyo, but she never knew who Mizuru-chan was.

"Oh Kyoko-chan," finally said the third girl, whose face resembled that of a fox. "These people are clearly very clueless." On cue, she brushed her dead-straight red hair with the back of her hand. "For your information, girls, we are Tezuka-sama's personal aid team_._"

Both Rio and Manami blinked at her, as if she had just said something very stupid.

"We have looked after Tezuka-sama's comfort and safety since middle school," continued Mizuru-chan proudly, ignoring the looks she and her minions were receiving from the two. "We take charge of crowd control whenever Tezuka-sama is outside the classroom, and we make sure to secure him a nice table at the cafeteria during lunch."

The other girl – Kyoko-chan, as they had learned – piped up, "We also make sure that his schedule goes according to his plan, and so it is essential that distractions such as you two be eradicated immediately." She didn't add anything else after that, and the three of them looked at Manami and Rio expectantly, as though waiting for an awed response.

Instead, the two girls burst out laughing.

"These—girls—are—idiots!" Rio choked, clutching her stomach tightly.

"This must be some sort of joke!" Manami blurted out, clutching Rio's shoulder for support as she laughed with her. "You guys are funny!"

"God, I'm really starting to _love _it here!"

Mizuru-chan, Kyoko-chan and fox-faced girl seemed completely caught off-guard by their reaction.

"STOP IT!" Mizuru-chan screeched, finally recovering from the shock. "You think this is funny? We're serious!"

"Yeah," Rio said, still laughing. "Keep up the good work, guys."

"Girls, I think we have encountered a nut case," Mizuru-chan concluded with a haughty scowl.

"Laugh all you want, but listen," Kyoko-chan warned. "If you ever come near Tezuka-sama, you'll have to deal with us."

"Oooooh, scary," Rio sneered, after a few final bouts of giggles. "Let's see what you can do." In a split-second, she side-stepped the three girls and loudly called out, "Tezuka Kunimitsu?"

"You did not just-?" Mizuru-chan yelped angrily, in chorus with Kyoko-chan's and fox-faced girl's outraged gasps.

Tezuka looked up at Rio's direction inquiringly, looking as if it was the first time he had noticed that there were actually other people in the room.

"Oh, I'm right!" Rio said in fake surprise, confidently approaching his desk. "I'm Takagawa Rio. It's nice to finally meet you! I've been watching your games."

"…It's nice to meet you," the boy said, his voice flat as usual. He then noticed the three other girls a little ways behind Rio, whose faces indicated that they had seen something horrible unfolding before them.

"TEZUKA-SAMA!" the self-proclaimed personal aid team said in unison, "We will get rid of her immediately!"

"Will you cut it out?" Rio yelled at them. "Jeez stop acting like a bunch of morons!" But she was mobbed by the three and was forcibly dragged away from Tezuka. "Get your hands _off_ me!"

Manami watched the girls bicker in silent amusement. Then she realized that she was left by herself and cast an uneasy glance at the bespectacled boy, her heart sinking when she found out that he was looking at her. _Please don't remember please don't remember—_

"Tanaka-san?"

…_Never mind._

She chuckled to hide her nervousness. "Hi…uh…" What should she call him? It was kind of awkward to call him 'Tezuka-san' because that would be too ambiguous, considering that she was on a first-name basis with the rest of his family. However, calling him by his first name seemed very inappropriate too.

Thankfully, she was saved from saying anything further by the loud ring of the school bell, announcing the start of the class. As the other students settled on random seats, she bowed her head awkwardly at the youngest Tezuka and hurriedly followed to where Rio and the others took off.

Could this day get any weirder?

* * *

><p>Apparently, it could.<p>

When classes ended, Manami still had a lot of time in her hands. Rio had suggested that they should familiarize themselves with the school grounds, but she already had her schedule mapped out on her mind. With a sincere apology to her new friend and a promise to tour the grounds first thing tomorrow, she rode her bike and left school, directly heading downtown.

Her first stop was at a jewelry store. She bought a new chain for her bracelet, one that would fit her wrist perfectly. Afterwards, she stopped by the floral shop and bought three stems of flowers and some incense. She then went ahead along a path that was distinctly familiar to her, as it had been her custom to traverse it at least once a year.

She came into a halt in front of a solemn-looking building surrounded by concrete walls that met at a pair of iron-wrought gates, in which the words _City Crematorium _were intricately welded. Her flowers and incense in hand, she entered the gates, greeted the old caretaker who was at the front garden and went inside the quiet, marble building, absently listening to the hollow echoes of her footsteps.

It didn't take long before she located her father's slot. Manami wasn't surprised to see flowers and burnt remains of incense. They were certainly from her mother.

Silently, she put the flowers she bought together with those from her mother, then lit up a stick. She clapped her hands together, bowed her head and closed her eyes, conjuring up a mental image of Tanaka Nagato.

_Hi, Otou-san_, she thought. _Happy ninth anniversary. I'm sure you're happy, wherever you are right now. Things aren't going so well here on Earth. As you might already know, 'Kaa-san's sick, but she won't admit it to me. It's very unfair right? I mean, I'm the only family she's got and yet she won't let me help her. _She paused for a moment. _But don't worry; I'm sure I'll come up with something…_

_Oh, and by the way, I'm wearing that bracelet you gave me. If only I could use it to call you, so you can save the day like you did nine years ago._

She opened her eyes and stared for a long time at the engraved letters that spelt out her father's name, day of birth and day of death. After what felt like hours, she finally bowed in farewell and left.

It was already dusk when she left the crematorium. The main streets were brightly lit and becoming busy with nightlife. Her mother hadn't texted nor called her yet. Most probably, she had already assumed that Manami paid a visit to her father's grave. That, or she was still angry and didn't want to talk to her.

Manami heaved a deep sigh as she finally stopped in front of the pet shop. Pushing her bike at her side, she noisily entered the shop entrance and yelled, "I'm home!"

"Manami-chan!" Date-san greeted, hurriedly scooting out of the counter to assist her with her bike. "Welcome back. Yuko-san is inside, entertaining your guests."

Manami, whose mind was reeling about that night's dinner, paused at that. "Guests?" she repeated blankly.

But Date-san had already gone inside their private quarters with her bike, and she followed curiously, spotting her mother and two other people situated at the living room.

Her eyes widened when she recognized the guests.

Tezuka Kunikazu looked up from the housekeeping magazine he had been peering on and brightened up. "Hi, Manami-chan!"

"Good evening," Tezuka Ayana greeted from beside him with a small nod. "How was your first day in school, Manami-chan?"

"Good evening, Ayana-san, Ojii-san," Manami replied, albeit a bit confused. "What brings you here at this time…?" She suddenly remembered the tiny revelation that transpired in school. "Oh, and it came as a big surprise to me to see -" she hesitated for a moment, but for the sake of clarification went on anyway "—Kunimitsu-san in the same class as mine!"

For some reason, both Tezukas seemed more delighted than what she had expected.

"Well that's wonderful!" Ayana said to Manami's mother, who had so far been politely quiet since Manami's arrival. "That would be a whole lot easier, then!"

Manami blankly looked from Ayana to her mother. "Am I missing something?"

"Well Manami-chan," Kunikazu started casually, "We came here to inform you that we'd like to hire you as my temporary caretaker!"

It had been at least two seconds before Manami fully understood what he meant.

"I'm really sorry," Ayana said apologetically, noticing her reaction. "I tried to reason out but Otou-san remains firm in his decision. Kuniharu and I have an important conference this coming week and no one will be left to look after him. I tried to convince him to hire other people but he won't agree with us."

"Besides, it won't be that long," Kunikazu reasoned. "It's just temporary! And the best part is you get paid for it!"

"…Well I don't know with 'Kaa-san," Manami finally said, looking at her mother.

Yuko seemed to snap out of her light daze. "Yes, well, as long as it doesn't interfere with school, Manami will always be ready to help you, Tezuka-san."

"Oh it won't be," Kunikazu said eagerly. "Ayana here, you see, had me enrolled in therapy to keep me busy till afternoon. Manami-chan will just have to pick me up and prepare food for me and Kunimitsu, then do some cleaning every other day, because you know how incapable my grandson is in doing household chores."

True enough, Manami could hardly imagine Tezuka Kunimitsu doing the dishes or holding a vacuum cleaner. Somehow, it didn't go well with his stoic personality.

After a moment's thought, she finally said, "When will I start?"

"Next week," Ayana said. "You can drop by any time before Sunday so that I can guide you around the house and inform you about Otou-san's daily routine."

"Does that mean you accept the job?" Kunikazu asked excitedly.

Manami smiled at the old man. "Gladly."

* * *

><p>Tezuka Kunimitsu looked up from his book when he heard the front door open and the noise of footsteps and light chatter along the hallway. A second later, his mother emerged in the kitchen doorway.<p>

"We're home," she said in greeting, spotting him at the dining table.

"Welcome back," he said. "Where have you been, Okaa-san?"

"At the pet shop."

Although a bit puzzled by her reply, he didn't ask any more questions and resumed reading. In his peripheral vision, he saw Kunikazu come up beside his mother.

"Kunimitsu, guess what?" the old man started happily, sitting on the chair directly across from him.

He put down his book and looked at his grandfather, silently waiting for him to go on.

"Manami-chan agreed to look after us!"

_Manami-chan…ah. _Almost immediately, he was reminded of the awkward-looking girl in his class earlier. His mouth twitched in a slight frown. "You mean Tanaka-san? Are you sure it will be alright for her, Ojii-san?"

"Of course!" Kunikazu exclaimed. "She'll be starting next week, so you better be nice to her!"

"I heard you're classmates," Ayana added from her position by the stove. "So I'm expecting you'd be very _warm _in welcoming her to our home."

"Yes, Okaa-san," he automatically responded. His book in hand, he stood and made a beeline for the stairs, thinking of doing some advanced reading. As he left, though, he couldn't help but notice the unusual smile that was creeping up on Kunikazu's face. The more unusual part was, the old man was looking directly at _him._

"Oh sorry, have I been smiling all by myself?" Kunikazu said in ill-disguised amusement as his grandson raised his eyebrows inquiringly at him.

_It must be old age, _the young boy thought, inwardly shaking his head. Without another word, he went up the stairs and shut himself in his room, blissfully unaware of his grandfather's impending plans.

* * *

><p>Orihime – Princess<p>

**EDIT: **Hi! :) First of all, thank you so much for reading/reviewing/subscribing to my newest story, _Oh, My Maid!_ It made me really happy! Keep those reviews coming, so that I'd have an idea or two about what you think about it. The story will start to make significant progress in the following chapters, so pardon the slightly dragging sequence of events.

Also, what do you think of Takagawa Rio? Well, I love her to bits! 3 As what you might have already figured out by now, I love inserting OCs in my stories. In fact, if you check out my other published stories you'll find out that all of them ship a Canon-OC pairing! Tell you what, I even plan on making Rio and another canon character a minor pairing! I think I've dropped a clue somewhere in this chapter as to who it might be. ;)

Lastly, I apologize for the minor grammatical and spelling errors in this story. Rest assured that I and my casual beta-reader are doing our best to produce quality fics!

Happy Easter, and see you in the next update! ;)


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